Couplehood works well for life partners and restaurateurs Jennifer Bonner and Lara Whittington of Full Circle Tavern
BURGER CZARINAS | Whittington and Bonner turned an
old law office into a popular neighborhood hangout in
The Cedars. (Arnold Wayne Jones/Dallas Voice)
FARAH FLEURIMA | Contributing Writer
farah@thedallasdiva.com
In its short lifespan, casual neighborhood joint Full Circle Tavern has emerged as a go-to haunt for dwellers in the funky Cedars enclave just south of downtown. Owners Jennifer Bonner and Lara Whittington — a couple behind the counter and in life — greet neighbors, foodies and concertgoers drifting in from shows at the nearby Palladium with a homey menu of craft beers, specialty cocktails, sandwiches and sides designed by executive chef Bonner. (Whittington handles more of the business/marketing side of the operation.)
Considering how well their venture has started, it’s remarkable that both women took circuitous routes to becoming restaurateurs.
“I was in advertising for 12 years prior to six years ago, when we started the business,” Whittington says. “I started 50 Foot Woman while I was still in the advertising game, which is our event planning company. And I started moonlighting with 50 Foot Woman, and then Jennifer got laid off due to the bad economy in 2008.”
After the layoff, Whittington delayed her plan to quit advertising to run the event company full-time while Bonner honed her kitchen skills, eventually providing box lunches at a friend’s salon. This avenue led to Whittington recommending Bonner’s catering for her client’s event and craft-services needs.
“We quickly realized that the catering company made a lot more money a lot faster than big events,” Whittington says.
And thus a push into the food biz began. Whittington finally left advertising in 2009 to tackling the sales and business aspects of their venture EdiblEnvy.
“Two years ago, we started talking, ‘If we were going to do a brick-and-mortar [restaurant], what would that look like and what would we want it to be?’ I think it was always quickly decided that it’d have to be a pub/tavern-style place,” Whittington says.
For her part, Bonner wanted to dive into the restaurant world with a sandwich shop.
“I remember calling Lara and I was like, ‘I wanna open a sandwich shop,’ because I love sandwiches and I love chips. And so I called her, and she was like ‘Really? OK.’ And then we talked about it, and it ended up being this.”
Both women had a love of hanging out at great bars and pubs, which led to them adding the watering-hole component into the Full Circle mix.
“I knew no matter what we opened, we were going to be there 28 hours a day, so we needed it to be a place we always wanted to hang out in,” Whittington says with a laugh.
That sense of festivity and fun is evident not just in the menu, with items sporting names such as the Italian Stallion, the Badass Burger and Redneck Peach Bellini, but in the cool, eclectic style that dominates the restaurant’s décor. Staying ever-mindful of the needs of their customers, the Tavern not only stays open late for those aforementioned
Palladium showgoers, but even plays a music mix in the same genre as the concert of the evening. It’s an atmosphere that’s so far proven inviting to many visitors.
“I’ve been so pleasantly surprised at the amount of regulars we have,” Bonner enthuses. “We seriously have some that come in four, five times a week. I wish I would’ve moved down here a long time ago — it makes me feel like I live in the city. I love the diversity down here. It fits us — it fits us as people, it fits us as a couple, it fits us as business owners.”
In addition to having heads for the culinary industry, Whittington and Bonner have a heart for volunteerism in the LGBT community, with a history of contributing time to Youth First Texas; Whittington also works behind the scenes at the Pride Gala, which raised funds and awareness for YFT. The current pace of their lives with the opening of the Tavern has curtailed their involvement some, though in support of the community, Whittington says, “We go to Black Tie and DIFFA.”
And they love the fact that, without being “a gay restaurant,” Full Circle Tavern provides a welcoming environment for everyone; they have already noted a lot of support from the gay community since opening last April.
Amid juggling all aspects of maintaining the eatery, the two face melding their partnerships in business and life with a hefty dose of positivity.
“It doesn’t feel like work the majority of the time,” Bonner says. “We fight, we bicker like every couple. But at the end of the day, there’s no one else I’d rather do this with, as a person, as my partner and a professional. I got the best of what someone would want in a business partner and in a partner, so to be able to marry the two …
I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition July 19, 2013.